Electric vehicles, or EV’s, are projected to be the dominant vehicle on roads by 2029, yet despite government encouragement towards their purchase, and repeated price cuts for Tesla vehicles, consumers aren’t going crazy for them at the moment. The cause of this seems less a problem of function and more of perception. Why are people not embracing the EV’s?
President Biden wants 50% of all vehicles on the road to be electric by 2030, and there certainly are historic commitments to electrizing cars across America. But “EVs” just can’t quite sneak into the mainstream when even generative AI like ChatGPT, a much newer concept, is already writing term papers for college students nationwide.
Let’s start with cost, which is perhaps the largest factor as to why EVs have not seriously dented the market share of conventional cars. Most EVs do cost more up front, which may be enough to turn some people away right there. But this is likely a problem that will be solved with time. Tax rebates from the government combined with the simple fact that electricity is more efficient than gas are powerful factors in favor of EV adoption.
In other words, the opportunity cost of buying an EV will decline rapidly even if the actual dollar amount does not. But of course, despite panicking investors, a tumbling stock, and millions in losses, Elon Musk has already shaved costs off of Teslas six times this year. If other automakers gradually follow suit despite the financial risks, EVs will get vastly more accessible. The moment your local car dealership is selling EVs at a reasonable price, it won’t be any different than buying a gas-powered car. In fact, it behooves you to get the EV.
Dollars and cents aside, the reason why consumers are hesitant about EVs is “range anxiety” or the fear that batteries will run out of charge too soon. It’s hard to get out of the routines associated with filling up the tank of a gas-powered car. EV advocates are trying to say that fueling is generally done while the driver is doing something else. Usually, you can charge your vehicle while eating or sleeping, and the battery lasts around as long as a gas tank; most drives won’t test the limits of a battery anyway. Yet this doesn’t seem to alleviate general concerns about the comparatively lackluster range of the vehicles or the general lack of charging stations. However, this anxiety should abate as the more common EVs become, the more ubiquitous accommodations for them will be.
And the last reason EVs aren’t a nationwide phenomenon is that this is an area where states–not the federal government–are leading. EV sales are at an all-time high but that is anchored by states like California. The state has pushed EV sales since the 1990s and was responsible for almost 20% of all EV sales during the first chunk of 2022. By their own estimate, California is responsible for 42% of the country’s zero-emission vehicles. That effort needs to be diffused nationwide for a more even impact. Just look at Mississippi and how it compares to other states: no government incentives for EVs exist and there are the fewest charging stations of any state in the Union. Such a contrast makes mass adoption impossible. Where would you charge your EV while driving through Mississippi?
Fear of charging, cost, and regional disparities explain why EVs haven’t had their true “national moment” just yet. But given how quickly technology changes and trends become common, it would not be foolhardy to predict that in even five years, EVs will indeed be the standard.
